NCJ Number
93742
Journal
Justice System Journal Volume: 8 Issue: 3 Dated: (Winter 1983) Pages: 271-286
Date Published
1983
Length
16 pages
Annotation
The growing body of literature on case delay has tended to overlook the effects of litigation's pace on the parties themselves. Opinions on the likely consequences range considerably; some observers see no effects, others see significant ones. The purpose of this article is to explore the consequences of the pace of litigation in the context of a delay reduction program undertaken in the Vermont Superior Court.
Abstract
Through interviews with parties and their respective attorneys in a selected number of cases, we found that litigants preferred their cases to be resolved in less than one year and were harmed by waits for longer dispositions. A fast pace for litigation reduced the chance that the litigants would suffer financial burdens or anxiety arising from the underlying controversy or the litigation. Oral and documentary evidence appears to suffer the longer a case is pending. Lawyers, on the other hand, were more satisified with a faster pace yet unable to fix upon a specific time frame for litigation because delay to them is a relative, not an absolute concept. Paradoxically, lawyers were found to cause delay while litigants erroneously blamed the court for delay. (Publisher abstract)